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Baseball 2/21/2019 | GCF Staff Report
Gamecocks To Host Utah Valley This Weekend for a Three-Game Series
The Gamecocks and Wolverines begin the series on Friday afternoon at 4 p.m.
Story Links
GAME NOTES (PDF)
UTAH VALLEY GAME NOTES
SEASON STATS (PDF)
LIVE VIDEO
LIVE STATS
TICKETS
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- The University of South Carolina baseball team hosts Utah Valley in a three-game series at Founders Park this weekend. The series begins on Friday afternoon (Feb. 22) at 4 p.m. and continues Saturday afternoon (Feb. 23) at 2 p.m. The three-game set wraps up Sunday afternoon (Feb. 24) at 1:30 p.m. All three games will be streamed on SEC Network Plus with Burch Antley and Kip Bouknight on the call. All games will be broadcast on The Game 107.5 FM with Derek Scott, Drew Meyer and Tommy Moody on the call. The Gamecocks scored eight unanswered runs to climb out a 6-0 hole and defeat Winthrop, 8-6, on Tuesday night (Feb. 19). Wednesday's contest against Presbyterian was cancelled due to inclement weather.
PARKING INFORMATION
> For the third straight season, shuttle parking for the University of South Carolina baseball season will be operational at the Key Road Gravel Lot (1105 Key Road) and in Lot B of the Colonial Life Arena parking lot. Shuttles will begin running two hours prior to game time.
We strongly recommend that fans use the baseball shuttle from Key Road to Founders Park over the CLA shuttle for the convenience, spacious parking (650 spaces) and less congestion than at the arena. Please remember that at the arena, shuttle parking will be limited to 50 spaces because of the student demand for parking in this area. There is a high student demand Monday through Thursday that lasts until 7 p.m. because of classes. Lots A and B are also reserved for men's and women's basketball parking on Feb. 19, 26, March 3 and March 9.(NOTE: THE CLA LOT WILL BE CLOSED FOR FRIDAY'S GAME DUE TO AN EVENT AT THE ARENA.)
For GPS purposes, the address for the Key Road Gravel Lot is 1105 Key Road, Columbia, SC 29201.
BUSINESS LOTS DURING AFTERNOON GAMES Business lot parking passes will be honored in Lot 1 ONLY for the Feb. 15, 19, 20, 22 and 26 afternoon baseball games based on availability. The businesses at 405 (Lot 9) and 401 (Lot 10) Huger Street request that you begin parking at 5:30 p.m. on weekdays. Other business lots open at 5 p.m. on weekdays. Parking is allowed in Lot 8 (the Cregger lot) on the Williams St. side for the afternoon early games.
GAME DAY PARKING INFORMATION (including public game day lots (PGDL: $10/$5 per game))
Weekday 4 p.m. Games (Feb. 15, 19, 20, 22, 26)
Game time: 4 p.m.
Stadium opens: 2:30 p.m.
Business Lots Open: 5/5:30 p.m.
Lot 1, STDM, HDG PDGL Open: 1 p.m.
Bus Shuttle for Patrons: 2 p.m.
Weekdays
Game Time: 7 p.m.
Stadium Opens: 5:30 p.m.
Business Lots Open: 5/5:30 p.m.
Lot 1, STDM, HDG PGDL Open: 4 p.m.
Bus Shuttle for Patrons: 5 p.m.
Saturday
Game Time: 4 p.m.
Stadium Opens: 2:30 p.m.
Business Lots Open: 1 p.m.
Lot 1, STDM, HDG PGDL Open: 1 p.m.
Bus Shuttle for Patrons: 2 p.m.
Sunday
Game Time: 1:30 p.m.
Stadium Opens: Noon
Business Lots Open: 10:30 a.m.
Lot 1, STDM, HDG PGDL Open: 10:30 a.m.
Bus Shuttle for Patrons: 11:30 a.m.
PROBABLE PITCHING ROTATION
Friday South Carolina Carmen Mlodzinski (So. RHP) 0-0, 6.23 ERA, 4.1 IP, 3 BB, 3 SO Utah Valley Jake Carr (Sr. RHP) 0-1, 6.75 ERA, 4.0 IP, 2 BB, 8 SO
Saturday South Carolina Dylan Harley (Fr. LHP) 0-0, 16.88 ERA, 2.2 IP, 5 BB, 5 SO Utah Valley Paxton Schultz (Jr. RHP) 0-0, 3.86 ERA, 7.0 IP, 2 BB, 7 SO
Sunday South Carolina Reid Morgan (Jr. RHP) 0-0, 1.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 0 BB, 3 SO Utah Valley Walker Ramsey (Sr. RHP) 0-1, 5.68 ERA, 6.1 IP, 3 BB, 5 SO
SCOUTING UTAH VALLEY
Utah Valley opens its 2019 season this past weekend with three games at Fresno State. The Wolverines won the middle game of the series, 4-3, as Drew Sims had a pair of hits and Alexander Marco drove in two runs. Paxton Schultz, Saturday's starter, struck out seven in seven innings of work as Utah Valley scored a run in the ninth to break the 3-all tie. Michael Beltran leads UVU with a .333 batting average while Marco has three RBI. Trevor Howell has two of the Wolverines' three doubles on the season. On the mound, the three starters that Utah Valley will trot out this weekend combined for 20 strikeouts against Fresno State. The Wolverines were picked to finish ninth in the WAC Preseason Poll.
THE SERIES
This is the first meeting on the diamond between Carolina and Utah Valley. The only time the Gamecocks have played a school in the current Western Athletic Conference setup was in 2011, when Carolina faced Cal State Bakersfield in a three-game series. The Gamecocks won the first two games by scores of 5-1 and 5-2 but dropped the series finale, 8-3.
CAROLINA COMES BACK TO BEAT WINTHROP
Carolina was down to Winthrop, 6-0, after two-and-a-half innings of play but chipped away at the Eagle lead before going ahead in the sixth on its way to am 8-6 win on Tuesday, Feb. 19. Carolina scored single runs in the third and fourth, two runs in the fifth and three in the sixth before adding insurance with a run in the eighth frame. Luke Berryhill brought in the game-winning run with a two-run single in the sixth. He joined TJ Hopkins and Noah Campbell with two hits in the contest as Carolina moved to 3-1 on the year.
BULLPEN SOLID IN FIRST FOUR GAMES
The South Carolina bullpen has a 1.50 ERA and allowed just one of 13 inherited runners to score after four games this season. The Gamecock pen has 35 strikeouts compared to just six walks in 24 innings pitched and carries a .141 opponent's batting average. Sawyer Bridges has a 1.80 ERA, seven strikeouts and a save in five innings pitched, while Parker Coyne and Brett Kerry have combined for 11 strikeouts in six scoreless innings for Carolina.
SEC LEADERS
TJ Hopkins dots the top-10 lists in many categories as of Feb. 20. Hopkins is tied for second in total bases with 16, while is 1.000 slugging percentage is tied for sixth. He is also tied for fourth with seven runs scored and in a 12-way tied for second, along with Jacob Olson, with two home runs. Brady Allen is tied for sixth with five walks. On the mound, Hayden Lehman is tied for the SEC lead with three appearances, while Sawyer Bridges is tied for ninth with a .188 opponent's batting average. As a team, SC is 11th in batting average and ERA and 12th in fielding percentage.
ALLEN GOES YARD IN FIRST GAMECOCK AT-BAT
Freshman Brady Allen's first collegiate at-bat was a memorable one, as the Lakeland, Fla., native belted a three-run home run in the second inning, scoring Jacob Olson and Luke Berryhill. Allen was 2-for-4 with three RBI and a walk in the opener.
SENIORS SLUG IN LIBERTY SERIES
TJ Hopkins and Jacob Olson both hit a pair of home runs in the season opening weekend against Liberty (Feb. 15). The seniors both have a 1.000 slugging percentage after three games. Olson had both home runs in Saturday's 13-7 win. He also drove in four RBI. Hopkins had a home run to straightaway center field in the eighth inning on Friday afternoon and then had a solo shot in the fourth inning on Sunday, which was Carolina's first hit of the day. Olson now has 20 career home runs while Hopkins has 10 in his Carolina tenure.
UP NEXT
The Gamecocks wrap up their season-opening homestand on Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 26), hosting Appalachian State at 4 p.m. South Carolina then will prepare for its annual three-game series vs. Clemson, which starts in the Upstate on Friday, March 1 at 6 p.m.

Gamecock baseball rallies from 6-0 deficit to top Winthrop in chilly temps
February 19, 2019
THE STATE
On a chilly, windy day at Founders Park on Tuesday, things went sideways for South Carolina baseball in a hurry. Then, inning by inning, the Gamecocks clawed their way back against Winthrop.
By the end of the night, USC had scrapped all the way back to an 8-6 win in its first midweek game of 2019.
Sophomore pitcher T.J. Shook, making his first career start for the Gamecocks, ran into trouble for the start. After a quick leadoff walk in the top of the first inning, he gave up a pair of doubles poked down the left and right field lines to score two runs. The Eagles got a third when junior catcher Luke Berryhill couldn’t corral a wild pitch, the runner on second took off and Berryhill’s throw skipped into left field.
Winthrop pushed its lead even further in the second inning. After a leadoff double to center field, pitching coach Skylar Meade pulled Shook in favor of Cam Tringali. Against the very next batter, however, Trinagli fielded a sacrifice bunt and threw the ball into right field, allowing the runner to score. Two batters later, another wild pitch allowed another run to score.
The Eagles’ last run of the day came in the third against Trinagli, as the leadoff batter singled, stole second, advanced to third on a groundout and raced home on another single.
Carolina’s rally started in the bottom half of that inning. After going hitless in the first two frames, USC cracked the scoreboard after junior right fielder Andrew Eyster singled through the left side of the infield. While he was retired on a fielder’s choice, sophomore second baseman Noah Campbell walked with two outs, freshman designated hitter Quinntin Perez was hit by a pitch and senior center fielder TJ Hopkins walked, driving in a run.
The Gamecocks added one more in the fourth after senior third baseman Jacob Olson reached on an infield single and senior first baseman Chris Cullen and freshman left fielder Brady Allen drew back-to-back walks to load the bases. With two outs, Campbell tapped a soft grounder to the shortstop that was muffed, scoring a run.
Two more runs crossed the plate in the fifth as Hopkins beat out an infield single and scored on a double down the left-field line from Berryhill. Two grounds balls advanced Berryhill around the bases and home.
While the Gamecocks’ offense was chipping away, sophomore Parker Coyne, who came on in relief of Tringali to start the fourth inning, kept the Eagles in check by throwing three one-hit innings and striking out six.
The only trouble Coyne faced on the day came in the top of the sixth, when a leadoff bloop double floated in between three Gamecock defenders, then a passed ball advanced the runner to third. Coyne responded with a pair of strikeouts and a flyout to escape.
In the bottom half of the frame, the Gamecocks stormed into the lead with a furious two-out rally. Campbell singled on a grounder to left field, Perez reached after his ground ball squirted between the legs of the second baseman, Hopkins doubled to left, scoring one, and Berryhill singled through the left side of the infield, scoring two more.
The Gamecocks added an insurance run in the eighth after Campbell doubled and scored when the Winthrop shortstop threw away a ground ball at first, and junior Sawyer Bridges completed an impressive seven-out save to slam the door.
Star of the game: TJ Hopkins put together a great game, going 2-for-3 at the plate with a double, two walks, two stolen bases, two runs and two RBIs.
Stat of the game: Six of South Carolina’s eight runs were scored with two outs. With two outs, the Gamecocks were 3-for-11 at the plate.
Play of the game: After giving up a leadoff double to start the eighth inning, Sawyer Bridges induced a soft ground ball back to the mound. With the runner on second trying to advance, Bridges fired a strike to third base to get the crucial out.

Gamecocks Score Eight Unanswered in Win over Winthrop With Videos, Gallery, Stats & More
The Gamecocks fell behind 6-0 after three, but battled back for its third consecutive win.
COLUMBIA – Trailing 6-0 after three innings, the University of South Carolina baseball team rallied for eight consecutive runs in an 8-6 win over Winthrop Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 19) at Founders Park. South Carolina moves to 3-1 while Winthrop falls to 1-3. (MORE)

6
Winthrop 1-3
8
South Carolina 3-1
Score By Periods
Team
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Winthrop
3
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
6
7
3
South Carolina
0
0
1
1
2
3
0
1
X
8
8
2
W: Parker Coyne (1-0) L: RENDON, COLTEN (0-1) S: Sawyer Bridges (1)
Game Recap: Baseball | 2/19/2019 | Kent Reichert | From USC Sports Information | GCF Staff Report
Gamecocks Score Eight Unanswered in Win over Winthrop With Videos, Gallery, Stats & More
The Gamecocks fell behind 6-0 after three, but battled back for its third consecutive win.
POSTGAME: Mark Kingston on Winthrop — 2/19/19
POSTGAME: Luke Berryhill, Sawyer Bridges, Parker Coyne on Winthrop — 2/19/19
BOX SCORE
Story Links
BOX SCORE (PDF)
PHOTO GALLERY
Next Game:
Presbyterian
2/20/2019 | 4 p.m.
SECN +
LIVE STATS
LISTEN LIVE
WATCH LIVE
FULL SCHEDULE
ROSTER
COLUMBIA – Trailing 6-0 after three innings, the University of South Carolina baseball team rallied for eight consecutive runs in an 8-6 win over Winthrop Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 19) at Founders Park. South Carolina moves to 3-1 while Winthrop falls to 1-3.
Winthrop took the early lead in the top of the first. Scout McFalls drew a walk and then Gamecock starter TJ Shook allowed two consecutive doubles to Alex Raines and Dillon Morton, the second of the two bringing home the two runners in scoring position. With Mulkey on second, Shook threw a pitch in the dirt and Mulkey advanced to third. Luke Berryhill's throw down the line missed the mark and wound up in left field, allowing Mulkey to score and put the Eagles up 3-0.
With Cam Tringali now in the game in the second for the Gamecocks, Jake Sullivan doubled after an attempted diving grab from Hopkins. A sacrifice bunt from Tyler Baker led to an errant throw from Tringali towards first to bring Sullivan home. Winthrop extended their lead again after a passed ball and a wild pitch from Tringali allowed Baker to round the bases to score and go up 5-0.
Winthrop continued its scoring in the third as it added another run. Mulkey got his second hit of the game, a single this time, then stole second before being driven in by Hunter Lipscomb to push the lead to 6-0.
The Gamecocks got one run in the bottom of the third thanks to a Brady Allen single followed by a walk, hit by pitch, and another walk to drive him in and cut the lead to 6-1.
South Carolina continued to chip away at Winthrop's lead in the fourth. Jacob Olson singled to start the inning off and he was ultimately brought home by Noah Campbell after getting on base on a fielding error, making the score 6-2.The Gamecocks continued working in the fifth, scoring two runs to make the score 6-4. A Luke Berryhill double down the left field line scored TJ Hopkins from first. Later in the frame, Chris Cullen grounded out to short but plated Berryhill to put the Gamecocks down two.Carolina added three runs in the sixth to take the lead for good. With two outs, Campbell singled and advanced to third on an error off Quinntin Perez's bat. TJ Hopkins doubled to bring Campbell home and Berryhill singled to left field, scoring Hopkins and Perez and giving the Gamecocks the 7-6 lead.Another run in the eighth brought the Carolina lead to 8-6, where it would remain to be the final. Campbell led off with a double and Hopkins reached on a throwing error to bring in Campbell for the eighth and final run.For the Gamecocks, sophomore RHP Parker Coyne (1-0) got the win, surrendering just one hit in 3.0 innings pitched, striking out six of the 10 batters faced. Junior RHP Sawyer Bridges got the seven-out save, giving up just one hit in 2.1 innings on the mound. For Winthrop, freshman RHP Colton Rendon (0-1) suffered the loss, giving up five runs, 2 of which were earned, in 2.1 innings pitched.
GAMECHANGER
Luke Berryhill gave the Gamecocks the lead for the first time on the night with a two-out single to left in the bottom of the sixth.
KEY STAT
Parker Coyne tied a career high with six strikeouts on the night, quieting the Winthrop bats that put up six runs in the first three innings of play.
NOTABLE
TJ Hopkins went 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI on the night, upping his batting average to .438 on the year.
Bridges picked up the seven-out save, his sixth career save as a Gamecock. Bridges struck out a batter in the 2.1 innings of work.
Carolina now has a 19-7 series advantage on Winthrop and has won four in a row over the Eagles.
Noah Campbell went 2-for-4 with two runs scored in tonight's win. He also walked in the victory.
UP NEXT
South Carolina will face Presbyterian Wednesday afternoon (Feb. 20) at 4 p.m. at Founders Park. The game will be streamed on SEC Network Plus.

7 takeaways from South Carolina baseball’s first series of the season
February 18, 2019
THE STATE
With a dramatic walk-off wild pitch win on Sunday, South Carolina baseball secured its first series win of 2019, taking two of three games against Liberty at Founders Park. With two midweek games coming up and a long season stretching out ahead for the Gamecocks, here are some early takeaways for USC — good, bad and in-between.
POSITIVES
Brett Kerry: The freshman right-hander was flat-out terrific for the Gamecocks this weekend, pitching three perfect innings in relief with five strikeouts. What made the performance even more exciting for USC fans was how unheralded he was in fall ball.
As it turns out, Kerry had a meeting with his coaches after fall practices and came back this preseason a changed pitcher, coach Mark Kingston said.
“They just sat me down and said, ‘Obviously, something needs to change,’ ” Kerry said. “And I think it was more mental. I just had to sit down with myself and be like, ‘I can’t be scared to go out there, and if I get hit, if I walk people, it is what it is, but I have to go out there and compete every time.’ ”
Reid Morgan: Morgan had started just one game across a year in JUCO ball and a year at Oklahoma State, but he was extremely effective against Liberty, going a team-high six innings and allowing just one earned run.
After coming to South Carolina expecting to be a bullpen arm, Morgan threw like a Friday night starter for the Gamecocks, but he said afterward he actually likes closing the weekend.
“A lot of people say, ‘Oh, it’s your Sunday spot.’ But more than likely, your Sunday spot’s your biggest spot,” Morgan said. “You’re either looking for a sweep or looking to win a series or just trying to win, so it was nice to see I was named to the Sunday role.”
Quinntin Perez: Throughout the fall and into the preseason, not much was said about freshman infielder Quinntin Perez, who seemed likely to become a second or third option at several positions and only seem limited playing time.
But Perez got plenty of opportunities in his first weekend and did well with them. After pinch-hitting Friday and drawing a walk, he started at DH on Saturday and went 2-for-4 at the plate with a pair of RBIs and a run scored. That performance earned him another start Sunday, and while he didn’t manage a hit, he did reach base after being hit by a pitch and should have had a bunt single had he not fallen running to first. And of course, he was at bat when the final, fateful wild pitch was thrown.
NEGATIVES
Defense: Before the series even began, Kingston said the defense would take time to develop and match last year’s squad, which tied the program record for fielding percentage. Sure enough, the gloves were far from perfect against the Flames, with four errors and a number of other sloppy plays.
“Some of our defensive areas need to be shored up,” Kingston said.
Free bases: Related to the point above, Kingston has repeatedly stressed the importance of limiting miscues that give opponents’ free bases. That haunted the Gamecocks on Friday, as the pitchers had four wild pitches, including one that let in the game-winning run. And it only got mildly better over the rest of the series — USC’s pitchers finished with eight wild pitches, two hit batters, one passed ball and one balk on the weekend. That’s a lot of free bases.
Noah Campbell: The preseason All-American had a dreadful start at the plate after tearing up the Cape Cod League and fall ball for USC. He was 0-for-13 to begin the year, before finally connecting for a single in his final at-bat of Game 3. He struck out six times and looked somewhat shaky at second base as well.
Mitigating all that is the improvement Campbell did show from start to finish in the series — he struck five times in Game 1, then walked, scored a run and only struck out once in Game 2 before collecting a hit and an RBI in Game 3 with no strikeouts. Still, not the first series Campbell or the fans were hoping for.
MIXED
Midweek starters: Because Carolina’s starters didn’t go very deep into the first two games of the series, Kingston and pitching coach Skylar Meade were forced to use all but two of the pitchers on their staff. Where that leaves the Gamecocks for their midweek starters is unclear, with Kingston seemingly keeping all options on the table.
“We’ll look at everything, we’ll see from a pitch count standpoint, see who’s available,” Kingston said. “Tuesdays and Wednesdays this year might be a lot of different guys. You see when we bring our bullpen guys in for one or two innings at a time, they all seem really good in that role, so we’re going to decide what the best way to try to have the best success on that Tuesday night is.”
SCHEDULE
South Carolina hosts Winthrop on Tuesday in a midweek contest at Founders Park. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m., and the game will be streamed on SEC Network Plus. The forecast calls for rain in the evening.
The Gamecocks are scheduled to host Presbyterian at 4 p.m. Wednesday and then host a weekend series against Utah Valley at 4 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday and 1:30 p.m. Sunday.

South Carolina takes series win over Liberty with walk-off wild pitch
February 17, 2019
Nothing was easy for South Carolina baseball in its first series of the season against Liberty. All three games on the weekend went back and forth and deep into the ballgame before being decided.
Sunday’s game was the toughest, as the Gamecocks gutted out a series win, winning 3-2 with a walk-off wild pitch.
After producing just four hits and stranding four runners throughout the first eight innings, USC (2-1) got the winning run in the ninth without recording an out — junior catcher Luke Berryhill led off with a walk, advanced to third on a single by senior third baseman Jacob Olson. With freshman designated hitter Quinntin Perez at the plate, the very first pitch scooted past the Flames catcher, allowing Berryhill to score with ease.
In the top of the first inning, junior college transfer Reid Morgan ran into some two-out trouble, in part due to his defense. After a sharp line drive single glanced off the glove of Olson, Liberty scored when freshman left fielder Brady Allen over-ran a ball that hit the wall, leading to a double. The next Flames batter produced a soft grounder to third, but Olson threw the ball over first baseman Josiah Sightler’s head, allowing another run to score.
After getting no-hit through the first three innings, the Gamecocks’ batters finally cracked the scoreboard in the top of the fourth when senior center fielder TJ Hopkins blasted a long shot that stayed just fair down the left field line for a solo home run.
The Gamecocks then tied the game in the bottom of the fifth after junior right fielder Andrew Eyster singled, junior shortstop Nick Neville doubled into the left-center field gap and sophomore second baseman Noah Campbell grounded out to second, plating Eyster.
Morgan, meanwhile, posted Carolina’s best starting pitching performance of the weekend, throwing five shutout innings after that first frame. The biggest jam he encountered came in the sixth inning, when he allowed back-to-back one-out singles, causing the first activity in the Gamecock bullpen. But he worked his way out of it with a strikeout and a soft ground ball, finished the day with six innings, one earned run, six hits, three strikeouts and no walks.
After him, USC’s bullpen once again put together a shutdown performance after coming up big in Saturday’s 13-7 win. Liberty managed to hit several balls hard, but all at defenders, and three relievers combined for three no-hit innings.
However, the Gamecock offense scuffled after the fifth inning, producing just one hit from the sixth to the eighth inning, setting up the ninth-inning heroics.
NEXT
South Carolina hosts Winthrop on Tuesday in a midweek contest at Founders Park. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m., and the game will be streamed on SEC Network Plus. The forecast calls for rain in the evening.

Homers provide the difference as South Carolina slugs its way to first win of 2019
February 16, 2019
It was by no means pretty, but South Carolina baseball has its first win of the year after taking down Liberty, 13-7, at Founders Park on Saturday.
After a gut-wrenching loss in extra innings on Opening Day, the Gamecocks (1-1) seemed to hit the field re-energized and re-focused from the get-go. Freshman starting pitcher Dylan Harley breezed through a perfect first inning with two strikeouts, and he immediately received support from his offense in the form of a five-run bottom of the first.
After striking out five times Friday, sophomore second baseman Noah Campbell worked on an opening walk. Freshman Brady Allen followed with a five-pitch walk of his own, starting a stretch of 12 consecutive balls from Liberty starter Mason Meyer that walked in a run.
Meyer finally retired a Gamecock by striking out senior third baseman Jacob Olson, but he then promptly gave up an RBI single to freshman DH Quinntin Perez and RBI walk to junior right fielder Andrew Eyster. After that, Liberty went to their bullpen, but sophomore first baseman Jordan Holladay and junior shortstop Nick Neville each got RBIs off a sac fly and single, respectively, to put Meyer’s final line at 1/3 of an inning with five runs, two hits, five walks and 34 pitches, only 10 for strikes.
The Gamecocks added two more runs in the second after Allen led off with a walk and senior center fielder T.J. Hopkins tattooed a ball into the right-center field gap for a triple. Hopkins came around to score on a two-out ground ball single from Perez.
Those two runs saved USC’s lead — Harley completely imploded in the top of the third inning. With two outs and a man on first, he surrendered a single, than four consecutive walks with a balk thrown in, then another single to give up five runs. He was pulled with two outs still on the board. Between the two teams, the first 12 runs were scored with just six hits.
Sophomore T.J. Shook, who replaced Harley, got out of the inning with no more damage, but with two outs in the fourth inning, he gave up back-to-back doubles to make it a one-run game.
Twice after that, Carolina got breathing room in the form of two-run home runs from Olson, who jacked two moonshots over the left field fence. In between those two long balls, Liberty managed an unearned run with two singles, a muffed double play and a wild pitch.
Beyond that, the Gamecocks’ bullpen shut down the Flames. Freshman Cam Tringali threw 2 1/3 scoreless and freshman Daniel Lloyd worked his way out of a jam in the eighth inning to preserve the lead, and senior catcher Luke Berryhill added another insurance run with a solo homer. Freshman Brett Kerry closed out the game with a perfect ninth inning.
Star of the game: Since the beginning of 2018, Jacob Olson has had 59 hits for the Gamecocks. Sixty-four percent of them have gone for extra bases, including all four so far in 2019. He had a team-high four RBIs Saturday and scored three runs. with a walk.
NEXT
South Carolina and Liberty are set to finish off their series Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at Founders Park. The game will be streamed online on SEC Network Plus. The weather forecast does call for intermittent rain throughout the day though.

6
Liberty 1-0
5
South Carolina 0-1
Score By Periods
Team
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
R
H
E
Liberty
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
1
6
8
1
South Carolina
0
3
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
5
10
1
W: BRABRAND, Evan (1-0) L: John Gilreath (0-1)
Game Recap: Baseball | 2/15/2019 | Kent Reichert | From USC Sports Information | GCF Staff Report
Gamecock Falls to Liberty on Opening Day at Founders Park
The Gamecocks allowed runs in the ninth and 11th to fall, 6-5, in extras.
HIGHLIGHTS: Baseball vs. Liberty — 2/15/19
POSTGAME: TJ Hopkins, Brady Allen, Sawyer Bridges on Liberty — 2/15/19
POSTGAME: Mark Kingston on Liberty — 2/15/19
BOX SCORE
Story Links
BOX SCORE (PDF)
PHOTO GALLERY
Next Game:
Liberty
2/16/2019 | 3 p.m.
LIVE STATS
LISTEN LIVE
FULL SCHEDULE
ROSTER
COLUMBIA – The University of South Carolina baseball team held a 5-4 lead with two out in the top of the ninth over Liberty, but a solo home run sent the game to extra and a run in the top of the 11th gave the Flames a 6-5, 11-inning win over the Gamecocks Friday (Feb. 15) on opening day at Founders Park.
The Gamecocks jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second as Brady Allen belted a three-run home run in his first collegiate at-bat, scoring Luke Berryhill and Jacob Olson. Berryhill tripled to start that inning and Olson reached on an error. Both runners trotted home on Allen's blast. Liberty responded with three runs of its own in the top of the third as Cam Locklear's three-run double down the line in left scored a trio of Flames.
Carolina retook the lead in the fifth as Andrew Eyster's doubled to left, scoring Chris Cullen, who doubled to open the inning. Both teams scored a run in the eighth. Jaylen Guy doubled to left to tie the game at four, but TJ Hopkins belted a solo home run to straightaway center field, putting Carolina up 5-4 in the eighth. Liberty was down to its final out in the ninth, but Will Wagner hit a solo home run off Sawyer Bridges to tie the game at five. The Flames scored on a wild pitch in the 11th to seal the win.Carmen Mlodzinski started for the Gamecocks on opening day. He struck out three and allowed six hits and three runs in 4.1 innings of work. Carolina pitching struck out 17 batters, as Bridges had six punchouts in 2.2 innings of work. The loss went to John Gilreath, who allowed an unearned run in his inning of work with two strikeouts.
Allen was 2-for-4 with three RBI, while Olson had a pair of doubles. Wagner led Liberty with three hits.
GAMECHANGER
The Flames scored a run in the 11th on an error, passed ball, groundout and wild pitch.
KEY STAT
Carolina had 10 hits on the day, seven of which were for extra bases.
NOTABLE
Carolina played in an extra-inning game on opening day for the first time in 2006, when they defeated Elon in 11 innings.
The Gamecocks started five newcomers on opening day – Brady Allen, Andrew Eyster, Luke Berryhill, Nick Neville and Josiah Sightler.
Hopkins homered in his first game back after missing 26 games in 2018 to injury.
The Gamecocks used five pitchers and each had at least two strikeouts in their outing.
South Carolina is now 86-41 all-time on opening day.
The loss snaps a three-game winning streak against Liberty.
Friday's attendance at Founders Park was 7,507.
UP NEXT
South Carolina and Liberty continue the series on Saturday (Feb. 16) at 3 p.m. at Founders Park.

Baseball 2/14/2019 9 Kent Reichert | GCF Staff Report
Gamecock Baseball Opens 2019 Season With Home Series vs. Liberty
The Gamecocks and Flames will being the three-game series Friday at 4 p.m.
Mark Kingston News Conference — 2/14/19
Carmen Mlodzinski, TJ Hopkins News Conference — 2/14/19
Story Links
GAME NOTES (PDF)
LIVE VIDEO (FRIDAY & SUNDAY)
LIVE STATS
TICKETS
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- The University of South Carolina baseball team begins its 127th season of play this weekend as the Gamecocks welcome Liberty to Founders Park. Opening Day is Friday, Feb. 15 at 4 p.m. The two teams will play on Saturday, Feb. 16 at 3 p.m. and conclude the series on Sunday, Feb. 17 at 1:30 p.m. Friday and Sunday's game will be streamed on SEC Network Plus with Burch Antley and Kip Bouknight on the call. All three games will be broadcast on The Game 107.5 FM with Derek Scott, Drew Meyer and Tommy Moody on the call. The three-game series opens a nine-game homestand for the Gamecocks. South Carolina will play 18 of its first 21 games at Founders Park.
PARKING INFORMATION
> For the third straight season, shuttle parking for the University of South Carolina baseball season will be operational at the Key Road Gravel Lot (1105 Key Road) and in Lot B of the Colonial Life Arena parking lot. Shuttles will begin running two hours prior to game time.
We strongly recommend that fans use the baseball shuttle from Key Road to Founders Park over the CLA shuttle for the convenience, spacious parking (650 spaces) and less congestion than at the arena. Please remember that at the arena, shuttle parking will be limited to 50 spaces because of the student demand for parking in this area. There is a high student demand Monday through Thursday that lasts until 7 p.m. because of classes. Lots A and B are also reserved for men's and women's basketball parking on Feb. 17, 18 and 21.
For GPS purposes, the address for the Key Road Gravel Lot is 1105 Key Road, Columbia, SC 29201.
BUSINESS LOTS DURING AFTERNOON GAMES Business lot parking passes will be honored in Lot 1 ONLY for the Feb. 15, 19, 20, 22 and 26 afternoon baseball games based on availability. The businesses at 405 (Lot 9) and 401 (Lot 10) Huger Street request that you begin parking at 5:30 p.m. on weekdays. Other business lots open at 5 p.m. on weekdays. Parking is allowed in Lot 8 (the Cregger lot) on the Williams St. side for the afternoon early games.
GAME DAY PARKING INFORMATION (including public game day lots (PGDL: $10/$5 per game))
Weekday 4 p.m. Games (Feb. 15, 19, 20, 22, 26)
Game time: 4 p.m.
Stadium opens: 2:30 p.m.
Business Lots Open: 5/5:30 p.m.
Lot 1, STDM, HDG PDGL Open: 1 p.m.
Bus Shuttle for Patrons: 2 p.m.
Weekdays
Game Time: 7 p.m.
Stadium Opens: 5:30 p.m.
Business Lots Open: 5/5:30 p.m.
Lot 1, STDM, HDG PGDL Open: 4 p.m.
Bus Shuttle for Patrons: 5 p.m.
Saturday
Game Time: 4 p.m.
Stadium Opens: 2:30 p.m.
Business Lots Open: 1 p.m.
Lot 1, STDM, HDG PGDL Open: 1 p.m.
Bus Shuttle for Patrons: 2 p.m.
Sunday
Game Time: 1:30 p.m.
Stadium Opens: Noon
Business Lots Open: 10:30 a.m.
Lot 1, STDM, HDG PGDL Open: 10:30 a.m.
Bus Shuttle for Patrons: 11:30 a.m.
WEEKEND ROTATION
Head Coach Mark Kingston will go with sophomore righthander Carmen Mlodzinski, freshman lefthander Dylan Harley and junior righthander Reid Morgan for the opening weekend rotation.
Mlodzinski will get the ball on Opening Day after making 19 appearances with seven starts for the Garnet and Black in 2018. He had three wins and a save while striking out 43 batters in 45.2 innings pitched. Mlodzinski earned the win in the Greenville Regional championship game against UNC Wilmington on June 4, striking out three and allowing four hits and three runs in five innings of work. He also struck out five in five innings in an SEC Tournament win over Missouri on May 22.
Harley will get the nod on Saturday afternoon and will make his Gamecock debut in the process. The Summerville, S.C., native was 8-0 with a state-best 111 strikeouts for Cane Bay High School his senior season. He helped Cane Bay to a 22-6 record and a Region 8-4A championship in 2018 while being named to the USA TODAY High School Sports All-South Carolina first team.
Morgan also will be making his Gamecock debut on Sunday afternoon. The Kingwood, Texas, native played at San Jacinto Community College for his sophomore year and was 2-1 with a 3.10 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 40.2 innings pitched. He helped San Jac to a 52-15 overall record and a semifinal berth in the JuCo World Series in 2018. Morgan attended Oklahoma State as a freshman, striking out four in six innings for the Cowboys. Morgan was 7-1 with a 1.27 ERA as a junior at Foster High School in Texas.
PROBABLE PITCHING ROTATION
Friday South Carolina Carmen Mlodzinski (So. RHP) 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 BB, 0 SO Liberty Andrew McInvale (Jr. RHP) 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 BB, 0 SO
Saturday South Carolina Dylan Harley (Fr. LHP) 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 BB, 0 SO Liberty Mason Meyer (So. LHP) 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 BB, 0 SO
Sunday South Carolina Reid Morgan (Jr. RHP) 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 BB, 0 SO Liberty Noah Skirrow (So. RHP) 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 BB, 0 SO
SCOUTING LIBERTY
Liberty is coming off a 32-26 season in 2018 while going 17-10 in conference play. The Flames are playing their first season in the Atlantic Sun Conference and picked to finish third in the A-Sun Preseason Baseball poll behind Stetson and Jacksonville. Liberty returns Tyler Galazin, who hit .286 with nine doubles, four home runs and 39 RBI in 2018. The Flames also bring back Cam Locklear, who had 10 doubles and 33 RBI as a sophomore. On the mound, Liberty will start newcomers Andrew McInvale and Mason Meyer on Friday and Saturday, respectively. The Flames will go with Noah Skirrow on Sunday. He was 4-3 with a 4.57 ERA and 77 strikeouts and a .223 opponent's batting average in 67 innings pitched in 2018.
THE SERIES
Carolina owns an 11-3 overall series record against the Flames, dating back to the 1974 season. The Gamecocks are 9-2 against the Flames in Columbia and own a three-game winning streak against Liberty. The two teams played a midweek game on May 10, 2017 with Carolina coming out on top 10-7. Riley Hogan drove in four runs while Danny Blair had three RBI in the win. Alex Destino walked five times in the win, setting a Carolina single-game record. The two teams have played in the regionals three times, once in 2000 and twice in 2013, with Carolina winning all three matchups.
CAROLINA-LIBERTY CONNECTIONS
Freshman Brady Allen's brother, Dylan, played four seasons for the Flames from 2014-18. Dylan, who was an infielder for the Flames, hit .258 as a freshman with 17 runs scored and 15 RBI ... Freshman Wes Clark and junior Nick Neville are natives of Virginia. Clarke went to high school at Liberty Christian Academy, right next to Liberty University. Clarke was the USA TODAY Virginia High School Player of the Year in 2018 and a 40th round MLB Draft selection by Milwaukee. His sister, Madi, also played softball at Liberty.
UP NEXT
The Gamecocks will host a pair of midweek contests at Founders Park. Carolina faces Winthrop Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 19) and Presbyterian Wednesday afternoon (Feb. 20). Both games will start at 4 p.m. with Wednesday's game streamed on SEC Network Plus.

Gamecock Baseball 2/11/2019
Bridges Named to Stopper of the Year Watch List
The junior had a 1.35 ERA and five saves for the Gamecocks last year.
Story Links
GREENVILLE, N.C. – Junior pitcher Sawyer Bridges has been named to the 2019 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch List, it was announced this afternoon (Monday, Feb. 11). Bridges is one of 75 relievers on the initial list, which is given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball.
Bridges made 21 appearances for the Gamecocks in 2018, going 2-1 with a 1.35 ERA and five saves. He had 25 strikeouts in 33.1 innings pitched and held opponents to a .223 batting average. Bridges saved his best for the postseason as a sophomore, striking out four in 3.1 innings of relief to earn the save in the Fayetteville Super Regional win over Arkansas. Bridges had a 1.45 ERA in conference games with three saves and 15 strikeouts while allowing just five earned runs all season.
The SEC had the most representation with 12 players finding their names on the watch list.
Bridges and the Gamecocks will open the 2019 season this Friday (Feb. 15) against Liberty. First pitch is set for 4 p.m.

5 for 5 with Baseball Coach Mark Kingston From USC Sports Information | GCF Staff Report
Feb. 08, 2019 Spend five minutes checking out five storylines for the Gamecocks as they prepare for the 2019 season. South Carolina baseball will have lots of new faces on the field this year, but after getting to within one game of the College World Series in Mark Kingston's first year as head coach of the Gamecocks last year, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic in 2019. With the loss of many starters from last year, figuring out how to fill out the lineup card will make for great competition."Losing our catcher, third baseman, shortstop, second baseman, first baseman, right fielder, and DH; that's a lot of spots to fill," Kingston said. "We need to see who is ready for which roles, but we have a lot of talented guys who are waiting for their turn. Now it's a matter of getting them out there and finding out where they fit in the order, who can play every day, who is going to platoon, and who is ready to handle a big crowd in the stands. You don't know until you actually get out there on the field and see them."With that in mind, Gamecocksonline.com sat down with Coach Kingston to chat about a few of the top storylines for South Carolina baseball in the preseason.Leadership and the Health
T.J. Hopkins
Six starting position players and six pitchers are gone from last year due to graduation and professional baseball, but the cupboard at South Carolina is not empty. With a year under their belts in Columbia, Kingston and his staff feel good about the leadership they have seen from returning players so far."All the seniors are trying to be good leaders; whether it's T.J. Hopkins (.345, 24 RBI, 14 SB), Jacob Olson (.234, 12 HR, 36 RBI), or Chris Cullen (.190, 3 HR, 15 RBI)," Kingston said. "(Junior) Sawyer Bridges (2-1, 1.35 ERA, 5 saves) is a really good leader for us from the pitching staff. (Sophomore) Carmen Mlodzinski (3-6, 1 save) tries to lead by example, and (sophomore) Noah Campbell (.270, 3HR, 13 RBI) leads by example as well. We don't name captains. We just try to promote leadership from within."Hopkins, a senior outfielder who battled various injuries last year, is the type of player that Kingston says brings a little of everything to the table, and when healthy, is capable of being one of the top college players in the country."Speed, power, defense, leadership. Everything. He's a five-tool player," Kingston said. "I think he's made the commitment to try to stay healthy. There are some things that are out of your hands, but in terms of getting healthy and doing the things it takes to stay healthy, he's where he needs to be. If he stays healthy, he's one of the premier players in the country."Transitions from Rookie YearAdjusting to playing at the college level can be difficult and seeing how those players mature in year two can be a difference-maker. Versatile infielder Noah Campbell put together a solid freshman season and is a preseason All-America selection heading into this year. After playing in the prestigious Cape Cod League for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox last summer (.364, 6 HR, 26 RBI), the coaching staff is excited about his emergence in 2019.
Noah Campbell
"He was nearly the MVP in the Cape Cod League last summer," Kingston said. "Noah is going to be a better defender. He's improving every day on defense. As a hitter, he got his feet wet last year getting used to this level of competition. I think the Cape Cod League was another big step in improving his confidence. That did a tremendous amount to help his progress."It was a huge step in his development. That does a lot for his physical development, just in playing that kind of competition. He came back with a much higher sense of maturity, confidence and feeling that he belongs now with the best in the country. That's invaluable. When our guys go off to play summer ball and have that type of success, without fail, they are really able to build on that the following year."Pitchers Mlodzinski, John Gilreath (24 g, 4.28 ERA), T.J. Shook (21 g,3-0, 2.33 ERA), and Parker Coyne (19 g, 1-1, 3.18 ERA) made an impact as freshmen last year, while gaining valuable experience as well.
More Depth on the Pitching StaffWith two of the three regular weekend starting pitchers gone from last year, Kingston and pitching coach Skylar Meade will give new and returning players and opportunity to earn a spot in the rotation. "We'll have more depth on the pitching staff, and we should have a lot more options," Kingston said. "Some of the guys we're looking at as potential starters are going to be Carmen Mlodzinski, Hayden Lehman (junior transfer from Walters State CC), Dylan Harley, a freshman, potentially (sophomore) John Gilreath, potentially senior Ridge Chapman, and sophomore T.J. Shook has made nice progress."
The staff has also done a lot of research into different ways Major League Baseball teams are forming their pitching staffs. Kingston noted that the coaches may have a different approach to the pitching staff in 2019."We're going to have to be creative with how we use our pitching. We may use starters shorter than normal to get to our bullpen and put guys in more match-ups," Kingston said. "We've done a lot of research this winter with Major League Baseball teams and how they're using pitchers. We're going to try to be as cutting edge as we can."What we're trying to do is study what the latest strategies are for winning games. We talked to a number of Major League teams in trying to pick their brains in how you use pitchers and how you look for the best matchups. The traditional left-right and right-left has been done for a long time. Now, it's number of pitches. Now, it's number of times through the order. There are a million different ways to try to tilt the advantage to your side. That's all we want to do. We want to make sure we are up to speed with every possible way to give ourselves a little better chance to win, whether that's how you match up in the fifth inning or how many times your starter goes through the batting order."In terms of some teams "working backwards" with handling their pitching staff, Kingston noted that it depends on your personnel as to how you can set up a staff and rotation."If you're balanced where a lot of guys are similar, and it's hard to tell who the best are, you might use them differently and use them for three innings at a time instead of five innings at time so that you always have a fresh arm out there," Kingston said. "There are a lot of creative ways and you just have to marry a certain strategy to the type of pitching staff you have."Where the Newcomers Fit In"One of the things to look forward to is the excitement of learning a lot about a large number of new players, where you could potentially have new starters at seven positions at any one time," Kingston said. "Last year you had a new coaching staff trying to learn everything with a veteran team. This year we have a lot of new players trying to figure everything out, with us trying to learn about those players. We don't have as many veterans. Every year there is learning, whether it's by players or coaches. It's just a matter of learning as many lessons as you can quickly."South Carolina fans are passionate about their baseball. Kingston and his staff have high expectations as well, but they prefer to stay focused on working hard and working intelligently towards their goals."You need to stay focused on the things that really matter," Kingston said. "If you're distracted by anything else, it's counter-productive. You need to understand that playing in the SEC, there are going to be ups and downs. Sometimes you're going to get the lucky bounces, sometimes you're not. You have to stay as even-keeled as you can because that's what these kids need from their leadership."With the Clemson series, everybody wants to win it. Every coach, every player, and every fan wants to win it. I wouldn't say we learned anything new, but we had the chance to see it with our own eyes as to what that passion is, and it's a great thing."Continued Growth of the Culture Keeping South Carolina among the college baseball elite is always an expectation, and in order to have a championship mindset, Kingston and his staff work hard to create a consistent culture in every phase of the program. He expects that to carry over into year two."The three words we have for them in the locker room are preparation, toughness, and discipline," Kingston said. "Everything we do feeds off those three words, whether it's in baseball or outside of it. If you use those three words to guide you, I think you'll have a lot success. That's what we want our culture to be, whether it's in the classroom, on the field, or in life. If you prepare for things well, if you have discipline in how you approach your job, and you have toughness – physical and mental, you're going to give yourself your best chance for success."While every year is a new season, Kingston likes what he saw from last year's team in overcoming early adversity to finish strong and make a great run in the postseason."There are going to be tough times over the course of the season," Kingston said. "There are going to be some bad days. It doesn't define you. You just have to keep working on the things that matter. You have to focus on what your process is and don't panic. We have so many new names and new roles to figure out, and so many guys playing at this level for the first time. So, if we have some bumps in the road, it's very important that we stay steady and stay the course until everything falls into place again."South Carolina baseball season opens at Founders Park on Friday, February 15 against Liberty.

Baseball 1/30/2019 2:47:00 PM Kent Reichert
SEC Announces 2019 Baseball TV Schedule
SEC Announces 2019 Gamecock Baseball TV Schedule
The Gamecocks will be on TV at least 10 times this season, starting with a March 30 contest against Auburn.
January 30, 2019 | GCF Staff Report
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The South Carolina baseball team will have at least 10 games televised on the ESPN family of networks with an additional 33 games on SEC Network Plus, the Southeastern Conference announced this afternoon (Wednesday, Jan. 30).
The Gamecocks will be on SEC Network for the final two games of the Auburn series. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 30 and 12 p.m. on Sunday, March 31. The first two games of the Alabama series also will be on SEC Network. The series starts Thursday, April 4 at 6 p.m. CDT and continues Friday, April 5 with another 6 p.m. CST start.
South Carolina will be on ESPNU on Thursday, April 11 at Florida. First pitch for that game is at 7:30 p.m. The Gamecocks move back to SEC Network on Saturday, April 20 against Texas A&M with a 4 p.m. first pitch.
The Gamecocks host Vanderbilt on Saturday, May 4 with an 8 p.m. first pitch on ESPNU. The home conference schedule wraps up with a three-game series against Kentucky (May 10-12). Friday's game starts at 7 p.m. with Saturday and Sunday's games beginning at 12 p.m. All three games will be broadcast on SEC Network.
The SEC Network will close regular-season coverage of the baseball season with a Bases Loaded special that will air on Thursday, May 16, when Carolina is at Mississippi State. The show features a live compilation of seven SEC games. The network then has a wildcard format for the final weekend of the season, as South Carolina's series at Mississippi State could be picked up on either ESPNU or SEC Network.
Every game of the SEC Tournament, scheduled for May 21-26 in Hoover, Ala., will be televised by the ESPN family. The first 16 games are on SEC Network with the final game (Sunday, May 26) airing on ESPN2 at 2 p.m. CDT.
The SEC Network Plus schedule will begin with Opening Day on Friday, Feb. 15 against Liberty with a 4 p.m. first pitch. All conference games not on the television platform will be on SEC Network Plus along with the Clemson game set for March 3 at 1 p.m.
All 56 regular-season games also will be available on the Gamecock Radio Network. Flagship station, 107.5 FM, "The Game", is the home of the Gamecocks.
SOUTH CAROLINA BASEBALL TELEVISION GAMES
Saturday, March 30 – Auburn – SEC Network (1 p.m.)
Sunday, March 31 – Auburn – SEC Network (12 p.m.)
Thursday, April 4 – at Alabama – SEC Network (6 p.m. CT)
Friday, April 5 – at Alabama – SEC Network (6 p.m. CT)
Thursday, April 11 – at Florida – ESPNU (7:30 p.m.)
Saturday, April 20 – Texas A&M – SEC Network (4 p.m.)
Saturday, May 4 – Vanderbilt – ESPNU (8 p.m.)
Friday, May 10 – Kentucky – SEC Network (7 p.m.)
Saturday, May 11 – Kentucky – SEC Network (12 p.m.)
Sunday, May 12 – Kentucky – SEC Network (12 p.m.)
SOUTH CAROLINA SEC NETWORK PLUS SCHEDULE
Friday, Feb. 15 – Liberty (4 p.m.)
Sunday, Feb. 17 – Liberty (1:30 p.m.)
Wednesday, Feb. 20 – Presbyterian (4 p.m.)
Friday, Feb. 22 – Utah Valley (4 p.m.)
Saturday, Feb. 23 – Utah Valley (2 p.m.)
Sunday, Feb. 24 – Utah Valley (1:30 p.m.)
Sunday, March 3 – Clemson (1 p.m.)
Tuesday, March 5 – The Citadel (7 p.m.)
Wednesday, March 6 – Gardner-Webb (7 p.m.)
Friday, March 15 – Georgia (7 p.m.)
Saturday, March 16 – Georgia (4 p.m.)
Sunday, March 17 – Georgia (1:30 p.m.)
Friday, March 22 – at Tennessee (6:30 p.m.)
Saturday, March 23 – at Tennessee (6 p.m.)
Sunday, March 24 – at Tennessee (2 p.m.)
Tuesday, March 26 – North Carolina A&T (7 p.m.)
Friday, March 29 – Auburn (7 p.m.)
Saturday, April 6 – at Alabama (1 p.m. CT)
Tuesday, April 9 – Charlotte (7 p.m.)
Friday, April 12 – at Florida (6:30 p.m.)
Saturday, April 13 – at Florida (TBA)
Thursday, April 18 – Texas A&M (7 p.m.)
Friday, April 19 – Texas A&M (7 p.m.)
Friday, April 26 – at Missouri (6:30 p.m. CT)
Saturday, April 27 – at Missouri (6:30 p.m. CT)
Sunday, April 28 – at Missouri (2 p.m. CT)
Friday, May 3 – Vanderbilt (7 p.m.)
Sunday, May 5 – Vanderbilt (1:30 p.m.)
Wednesday, May 8 – Furman (7 p.m.)
Tuesday, May 14 – USC Upstate (7 p.m.)
Thursday, May 16 – at Mississippi State (6:30 p.m. CT)
Friday, May 17 – at Mississippi State (6:30 p.m. CT)
Saturday, May 18 – at Mississippi State (1 p.m. CT)

Gamecocks have raw power. Now Mark Kingston’s trying to turn it into home runs
January 28, 2019
In coach Mark Kingston’s first season in 2018, South Carolina baseball launched 79 home runs, tied for fourth in the SEC and the most the program has had since 2011.
Heading into 2019, Kingston believes the Gamecocks can continue that power surge. His belief, naturally, is rooted in numbers — analytics have become central to USC’s approach under Kingston.
“The general data shows that we have the same amount of raw power that we did last year, but it’s less experienced hitters,” Kingston said Sunday. “So will they be able to do it in games, will they able to pick the right pitches to get their power swings off? A lot of that is still to be determined, but from a raw data standpoint, we have the same amount of power as last year.”
The first weekend of scrimmages in the preseason seemed to indicate that inexperience won’t stop Carolina from mashing the ball this year. Across 27 half-innings of baseball, USC hitters connected for four home runs, with freshmen Brady Allen and Josiah Sightler and junior college transfers Luke Berryhill and Nick Neville accounting for the bombs.
Neville had one of hardest hits of the weekend, a blast that came off his bat at 105 miles per hour and landed in the right field bullpen. In addition, Kingston has expressed excitement about the power of senior Jacob Olson, who was second on the team in home runs last year, senior T.J. Hopkins and junior Andrew Eyster, who slugged 13 long balls in 49 games in JUCO ball.
Power won’t be the only aspect of South Carolina’s offense this spring, though. After stealing 48 bases last season compared to 36 the year before, the Gamecocks will continue to emphasize running the bases, Kingston said. Over the weekend, sophomore infielder Noah Campbell was particularly aggressive in taking off once he reached base.
Conversely, not allowing any wild pitches and holding runners on has been a focus for USC’s pitchers and defense, Kingston said.
“It’s a big part of the game,” he said. “One of the big things we talk about is not giving up free bases whether that’s walks, steals, passed balls or wild pitches, and trying to get those for our offense as well. Running the bases is one of those things is sometimes people don’t appreciate how important those extra 90 feet is throughout the course of the game.”
ROTATION UPDATE
After the first few scrimmages of the new year, Kingston was unwilling to declare any winners or losers in the battle for the Gamecocks’ weekend rotation, where at least seven pitchers are competing for three spots.
“I think (sophomore Carmen Mlodzinski) had a good week, (freshman Dylan Harley)had a good week. I don’t think anyone had a bad week. I think it’s going to be close with a lot of guys trying to inch ahead,” Kingston said. “It’s still too early to say, but none of them hurt themselves.”
Kingston did say, however, that USC’s pitching is slightly ahead of its hitting at the moment, in large part due to the staff’s lack of walks. In 2018, South Carolina hurlers issued more free passes than any season in program history since 2002.
“There’s a lot of guys throwing strikes, our walks are way down from what they were a year ago at this time,” Kingston said.

Baseball 1/28/2019 | From USC ports Information | GCF Staff Report
Campbell Named Preseason All-American by Baseball America
Campbell hit .270 in his rookie campaign and belted six home runs in the Cape this past summer.
Story Links
DURHAM, N.C. – University of South Carolina baseball sophomore Noah Campbell was named to Baseball America's Preseason All-America second team, the publication announced this morning (Monday, Jan. 28).
Campbell is coming off a freshman season in which he hit .270 with three doubles, three triples, three home runs and 13 RBI. The Durham, N.C., native was 7-for-8 in stolen base attempts and had a .372 on-base percentage. Campbell recorded 15 multi-hit games and four multi-RBI performances. He hit .286 in conference contests with 11 runs scored.
This past summer, Campbell hit .364 with seven doubles, six home runs and 26 RBI for Yarmouth-Dennis in the Cape Cod League.
This is the third-straight year that a Gamecock has earned Preseason All-America honors by Baseball America. Last year, Carlos Corteswas a third-team selection, while Wil Crowe earned third-team honors in 2017.
The Gamecocks open the 2019 season on Friday, Feb. 15 against Liberty. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m.

WITH VIDEOS: Gamecock Baseball Media Day
January 23, 2019
With South Carolina baseball poised to begin full-team practices for the 2019 season, the state of coach Mark Kingston’s pitching staff remains as undefined as he left it in the fall. (MORE)

WITH VIDEOS: Gamecock Baseball Media Day
January 23, 2019
Mark Kingston News Conference — 1/23/19
MORE VIDEOS BELOW
With South Carolina baseball poised to begin full-team practices for the 2019 season, the state of coach Mark Kingston’s pitching staff remains as undefined as he left it in the fall.
The Gamecocks have just over three weeks before they open the season on Feb. 15 against Liberty. The starting pitcher for that game will “probably” be sophomore Carmen Mlodzinski, Kingston said Wednesday.
Beyond that, there are six other players Kingston is considering as starters — though that may change as he considers some radically unconventional approaches.
During the offseason, the USC coaching staff spoke to several MLB teams to stay “a step ahead, not a step behind, on what the latest ideas are,” as Kingston put it. Among those teams were the Tampa Bay Rays, who pioneered the use of an “opener,” a relief pitcher who starts the game, throws one or two innings and then makes way for the traditional “starter.”
What Kingston got from his talks with the Rays was that the “opener” strategy is a way to overcome starting pitching that’s not quite as good as a coach wants while also utilizing a deep bullpen.
“The starter starts his outing at the bottom of the order and it rolls over, and he gets to face the bottom of the order twice before he has to face the top of the order twice,” Kingston explained. “There’s a lot of mathematics to it. At the end of the day, what we took from talking to the Rays, you just try to maximize and give yourself edges. If your best guy is pitching against the bottom of the order, you’ve given up to much. You want your best guys pitching against the best hitters as often as possible.”
At the same time, Kingston mentioned the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves as two other MLB teams he spoke with during the offseason, and neither of those teams utilized the “opener” as much as the Rays did. He also said if three pitchers distinguished themselves over the course of the preseason as ones that can work through major innings, then he will not hesitate to use a conventional approach.
“Until we know for sure that we have three workhorses on the weekend to just hand the ball off to and say we’ll see you in the seventh inning — we don’t have that yet, doesn’t mean we won’t — but what we’re just trying to do is study what the latest strategies are for winning games,” Kingston said. “At the end of the day, that’s what we’re trying to do, we’re trying to win games, and Major League teams now, through the use of analytics and studies of statistics and trends, are starting to figure out ways to be creative if you don’t just have (Clayton) Kershaw and Chris Sale to throw out there every day.”
For opening day, at least, Kingston has Mlodzinski, USC’s most experienced returning starter from last season, who he believes has taken tremendous strides toward becoming an ace.
“Physically, he looks much better. He looks like an SEC guy,” Kingston said. “Last year, I think he was trying to get to that point. He has a very mature calmness about him right now, but also married with being a great competitor. I just think everything you can grade a pitcher on, he’s gotten better.”
“I look back on last year and try to learn from everything that happened,” Mlodzinski said. “I added a pitch, added a cutter to my repertoire, so that was a huge change going from three pitches to four pitches, and that just made everything that much better for me.”
The other six names Kingston said he and pitching coach Skylar Meade are considering for the starting spots are freshman Dylan Harley sophomores John Gilreath and TJ Shook, juniors Reid Morgan and Hayden Lehman and senior Ridge Chapman.
Of that group, Morgan, a right-handed junior college transfer, and Chapman might wind up as power-throwing set-up men for closer Sawyer Bridges, Kingston said.
“I think we have a chance to have a really good back of the bullpen, and that’s another strategy, if you don’t feel like you can have an unbelievable starting rotation ... you really stack the back of the bullpen,” Kingston said.
Lehman is another JUCO transfer who has a proven track record of winning on that level, with an 8-1 record last year. Shook, after an uneven freshman year, looks much improved, and Harley is “a name that not many people are aware of right now, but by the end of the season, everyone will know who he is,” Kingston said. The head coach also mentioned freshman Wesley Sweatt as a likely contributor this year.
With that logjam of potential starters and the possibility of an unusual or unique approach to it, Bridges said the entire staff needs to move past worrying about their traditional individual roles.
“People on pitching staffs in general get caught up so much in roles, just everybody thinking, ‘Hey, I gotta be a starter, I gotta be a middle reliever, I gotta be a closer,’ whatever,” Bridges said. “It makes guys almost compete against each other to where it’s ‘I need to get this role, I need to get this role.’ Pitching’s just getting outs. If we all just focus on getting outs and not worrying about who’s gonna be where ... I think we’ll be alright.”
TJ Hopkins Media Availability — 1/23/19
Andrew Eyster Media Availability — 1/23/19
Chris Cullen Media Availability — 1/23/19
Sawyer Bridges Media Availability — 1/23/19

Noah Campbell ready to become elite player after making big strides during offseason
January 22, 2019
SPURS & FEATHERS
Mark Kingston predicted big things for Noah Campbell the first time he saw him in the fall of 2017.
Campbell showed flashes of that potential as a freshman, batting .270 with a .372 on-base percentage in 47 games as South Carolina made it to the NCAA Super Regionals in Kingston’s first season.
Campbell seems poised to take a giant leap for the Gamecocks in his second season. If his performance and development this summer in the elite Cape Cod League is any indication, Kingston believes he could emerge as one of the best players in the country.
“His progress has been very impressive,” he said. “He had a solid freshman year, he went to the Cape and had a great summer. He could have been named the MVP of the Cape Cod League so he had a tremendous summer.”
Pitching rotation, preseason position battles
Playing in the top summer league for college players, Campbell finished second in the league in both hitting and on-base percentage to make the Cape Cod All-Star team. In 32 games, he hit .364 with a .456 on-base percentage and an OPS of 1.092. He hit six home runs, scored 20 runs and had 27 RBI to help lead the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox to the Cape playoffs.
When Campbell returned to Columbia in the fall, he looked like an elite player.
“He continued to develop offensively and defensively and he picked right up where he left off this fall,” Kingston said. “He had a great fall for us and is another kid who is a great leader and a great example of what we want our players to be. I expect him to be borderline All-American this year. I really do.”
Campbell’s biggest challenge was to learn to play second base, where he is expected to start this season and is projected for the next level. Campbell came to South Carolina as an infielder but was stuck behind seniors LT Tolbert and Justin Row at second base and senior Madison Stokes at shortstop last year. He spent most of the season as the team’s DH before getting some outfield work late in the season.
When he arrived in the Cape, his mission was to return as a solid defensive second baseman. He spent 10 games at DH while he worked on his defense, and then took over the position for his team.
“Coach Kingston basically told me I needed to go to Cape Cod and work really hard on my defense so when I cam back I was ready to play second base at this level, so that was something that I really, really worked on,” Campbell said.
“I was pretty solid on balls straight at me and balls to my left, I just needed to work on the charge play to my right and balls to my right and just working around the bag and just having a feel for what it takes to play second base. I feel like a lot of those things I have gotten better at but I can still get better.”
Campbell looked solid at the position in the fall, handling routine plays and making several outstanding plays as well. Kingston was pleased with his progress and said after fall camp he expected Campbell to be the starting second baseman.
“His defense has come a long way,” he said.
“I’m not quite where I want to be, you always have to keep getting better, but I felt like I made significant improvement,” Campbell said.
Hopkins poised for big senior year
Offensively, Campbell continued to refine his approach at the plate and became more of a power and run-producing threat. He had just three home runs and 13 RBIs in 47 games as a freshman but hit six with 27 RBI and 15 extra-base hits in 32 games this summer.
“It was just refining my approach,” he said of his summer work. “I feel like my swing didn’t really change that much, if at all, it was just going up there and knowing what pitches I can hit and do damage on and just get on base with.”
A high school All-American who was drafted in the 19th round by the Milwaukee Brewers, Campbell had a solid freshman season but also endured his share of struggles. He got off to a strong start but missed 16 games with a broken finger and struggled a bit when he returned.
Asked what he learned during his first season, Campbell said, “It’s an everyday thing. You have to go out there ready to play every day, because the day you are not ready to play is the day you are 0-for-5 and don’t help the team win. Just go out there and just be yourself every day, confident and ready to go.”
Dealing with the injury last season was frustrating but Campbell kept his head up and was able to help the Gamecocks after he returned. With center fielder TJ Hopkins also out with injury, Campbell was able to play some games in the outfield late in the season and continued contributing at the plate.
“It was a little frustrating with the injury, but at the same time, when I came back we were doing really well as a team so it was hard to think about my finger when we were doing so well toward the end of the season,” he said. “And then we made it to a Super Regional and I didn’t really think about my finger too much.”
Campbell also had to adjust to serving as the designated hitter after playing in the field his whole career. That requires tremendous patience and mental fortitude but the freshman handled it well. When he wasn’t in the field, he was analyzing the opposing pitcher and preparing for his next at-bat.
“DH takes some time to getting used to,” he said. “I feel like it’s one of those things that when you start out, you’re like, ‘I’m used to running back out on defense and not thinking about hitting.’ But then when you are in at DH, all you can think about is hitting. You just have to kinda flush it and move on to your next at-bat and help the team win.”
Kingston is looking forward to having his budding star in the field and in the lineup every day this season. The big question is where will he hit in the lineup? He hit leadoff last season but showed enough pop this fall to hit in the middle of the order.
“I think he is one of better hitters in America,” Kingston said. “The big decision for me and our staff is how do we use him offensively. Is he a leadoff catalyst? Is he a two-hole guy? You can put him in the three-hole because I think he will hit in the .350 range and will be able to drive in a bunch of runs as a line drive hitter. A lot of things are still on the table for how we use him … but Noah is going to be a big part of our success.”
No matter where he hits, Campbell seems poised and prepared for a big year.
“I feel like I’m going to go out there and have a chance to play second base and wherever he puts me in the lineup I feel like I am going to do my job and help the team win, drive in runs, score runs, steal bases, play good defense,” he said. “If I do that then I feel like the team is going to do pretty well.

Baseball 1/18/2019 | From USC Sports Information
Baseball to Host Fan Appreciation Day on January 26
The Fan Appreciation Day is free and open to the public.
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- As a kickoff for the 2019 season, the University of South Carolina baseball team announced today that they will host a Fan Appreciation Day on Saturday, January 26 at Founders Park. The Fan Appreciation Day is free and open to the public. The event will consist of a intra-squad scrimmage followed by an autograph session. Gates will open at 12pm and fans will be able to watch warm-ups and batting practice. The intra-squad scrimmage will begin at approximately 1:30pm. Following the scrimmage, fans will get the chance to meet the 2019 team and receive autographs on this year's poster. This will be the first opportunity for fans to pick up the 2019 poster. As part of the Athletic Department's continuing partnership with Founders Federal Credit Union, all Founders FCU employees are invited to enjoy special access for the event. Founders FCU employees will be able to take in the scrimmage from the Perch Party Deck, with light refreshments and snacks. Founders employees will also have the chance to a receive a behind the scenes tour of Founders Park before the scrimmage begins. There will be a check-in table located inside Gate 1 for Founders FCU employees to have access to their special access at the event. All fans wishing to attend Fan Appreciation Day should park in the gravel lot located on the corner of Wheat St. and Williams St. Fans can enter Founders Park located through Gate 1 in the outfield. Drinks and light snacks will be available for purchase at the concessions stand. The Athletics Department Clear Bag Policy will be in effect for the event.

Game times set for South Carolina-Clemson baseball rivalry series
January 19, 2019
The schedule and game times for the South Carolina-Clemson baseball rivalry series have been finalized.
The two teams will play Game 1 of the three-game series Friday at Doug Kingsmore Stadium in Clemson at 6 p.m. on March 1, with Game 2 scheduled for Saturday at Fluor Field in Greenville at 1 p.m.
The three-game series will conclude Sunday at Founders Park in Columbia. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. that Sunday.
The rivalry series is recognized as one of the best in college baseball as the two programs are almost always in the postseason.

South Carolina baseball gets new video board for 2019
December 14, 2018
The best college baseball stadium in America is getting better.
The University of South Carolina has contracted with Daktronics, a world leader in audiovisual systems, to design, manufacture and install a new LED video display for Founders Park.
The display will be one of the 10 largest in college baseball, with a total of 1,450 square feet. The LED video display will be ready for the 2019 season opener, Feb. 15 vs. Liberty.
"In working with our multimedia rightsholder, IMG College, we were able to secure a video board that will be beneficial to our program and add to the game day experience at Founders Park," said South Carolina Athletics Director Ray Tanner. "The LED video display will be easy to see throughout the ball park and we will be able to add quality content that will be enjoyable for fans."
The new display will measure approximately 33.5 feet high by 43 feet wide and will feature a 13HD pixel layout to bring exceptional image clarity and contrast with wide angle visibility to Gamecock fans seated throughout the stadium.
"Founders Park is a great collegiate baseball stadium and we're excited to be a part of this scoreboard project," said Corey Williams, Daktronics sales representative. "It's always a pleasure working with everyone at the University of South Carolina. The new video display will be nearly 3.5 times larger than the current video display so we can't wait to see it in action and how Gamecock fans react to the new addition."
The new LED display at Founders Park continues a trend of enhancing the fan experience at Gamecock facilities using video. The new display at Founders Park comes less than 18 months after new video and ribbon boards were added at Colonial Life Arena, also working with IMG College and Daktronics.
A new video board was also added to the Carolina Volleyball Center prior to the 2018 season and the Williams-Brice Stadium video board was installed prior to the 2012 season.
The display is capable of variable content zoning allowing it to show one large image or to be divided into multiple zones to share live video, instant replays, statistics and game information, graphics and animations, and sponsorship messages.
Season tickets for Carolina baseball are available at ItsGreatToBeAGamecock.com, or by calling the Gamecock Ticket Office at 1-800-4SC-FANS.
Continue to visit GamecocksOnline.com for updates on Gamecock baseball.

South Carolina baseball unveils its full 2019 schedule
October 24, 2018
South Carolina baseball released its 2019 schedule on Wednesday, with the Gamecocks’ slate including nine opponents who advanced to last season’s NCAA tournament.
Mark Kingston’s second season at USC will begin on Feb. 15 with an opening weekend matchup against Liberty. In 2018, the Flames advanced to the semifinals of the Big South tournament, falling to eventual champion Campbell.
The Gamecocks’ other nonconference weekend series will come against Valparasio, Utah Valley and the program’s annual rivalry series with Clemson, which will feature one game in Columbia, one in Clemson and a neutral-site contest in Greenville.
Valparaiso and Utah Valley finished a combined 34-71 in 2018. Clemson was a national seed in the NCAA tournament but was upset by Vanderbilt, missing out on the Super Regionals.
USC is slated to play in minor league stadiums four times in 2019 — twice at BB&T Ballpark in Charlotte, N.C., once at SRP Park in North Augusta, S.C. and once at Fluor Field in Greenville, S.C.
Those two midweek contests in Charlotte will come against nationally prominent programs in North Carolina and North Carolina State. Other potentially challenging midweek contests include home games with North Carolina A&T, an NCAA tournament team in 2018, and Charlotte.
Kingston’s conference slate features home series with Vanderbilt, Auburn and Texas A&M, all of whom earned berth’s in last year’s NCAA tourney, and two road trips to 2018 College World Series participants — Florida and Mississippi State.
The Mississippi State series will be the last one of the regular season, with the SEC tournament in Hoover, Alabama, beginning just a few days later.
SOUTH CAROLINA BASEBALL 2019 SCHEDULE
Feb. 15-17 — Liberty
Feb. 19 — Winthrop
Feb. 20 — Presbyterian
Feb. 22-24 — Utah Valley
Feb. 26 — Appalachian State
March 1 — Clemson
March 2 — Clemson (Fluor Field, Greenville, S.C.)
March 3 — at Clemson
March 5 — The Citadel
March 6 — Gardner-Webb
March 8-10 — Valparasio
March 12 — at The Citadel
March 15-17 — Georgia
March 19 — at Furman
March 22-24 — at Tennessee
March 26 — North Carolina A&T
March 29-31 — Auburn
April 2 — North Carolina State (BB&T Ballpark, Charlotte, N.C.)
April 5-7 — at Alabama
April 9 — Charlotte
April 12-14 — at Florida
April 16 — North Carolina (BB&T Ballpark, Charlotte, N.C.)
April 19-21 — Texas A&M
April 23 — Charleston Southern (SRP Park, North Augusta, S.C.)
April 26-28 — at Missouri
May 3-5 — Vanderbilt
May 8 — Furman
May 10-12 — Kentucky
May 14 — USC Upstate
May 16-18 — at Mississippi State
May 21-26 — SEC tournament (Hoover, Ala.)
*Home games are in bold, neutral-site games are in italics

Mark Kingston’s early observations from USC baseball’s first fall scrimmages
Sept. 26, 2018
THE STATE
South Carolina baseball finished off its fourth fall scrimmage on Tuesday, playing eight innings at Founders Park for the Gamecocks’ longest intrasquad game since practice began this September.
Afterward, coach Mark Kingston cautioned that it is too early to definitively say what sort of strengths or weaknesses he thinks USC might have for the 2019 season, but he did note that the balance between pitching and hitting is far more even than it was last fall, when Carolina’s offense was ahead of its defense.
“Nobody dominated. I think the pitchers did a good job of throwing strikes — we had a three-to-one strikeout to walk ratio today, which is pretty good in my time here for our pitchers in an intrasquad game,” Kingston said. “We also had 13, 14 hits today, so I thought it was a pretty even match from that standpoint. I think that’s good. You want your hitters to have good performances, but you also want your pitchers to have good performances.”
From an offensive standpoint, two South Carolina hitters have launched home runs so far at Founders Park — senior outfielder/infielder Jacob Olson and junior Nick Neville. Both, however, are currently sidelined by strained obliques they sustained this fall, injuries that are not major, Kingston said. Joining them on the list of players who have been hurt in the past week is freshman Wes Clarke, who is day-to-day with a knee injury.
“In the fall, you’re not going to push guys to do things and make things worse in the fall. They’ll be fine,” Kingston said.
Kingston, however, was not as optimistic when addressing the status of sophomore pitcher Logan Chapman, who reportedly tore his UCL last week after laboring through two innings in a scrimmage.
“He’ll continue to be evaluated, but it’s looking like it won’t go our way this season,” Kingston said.
Chapman will almost certainly miss the 2019 season, alongside fellow hurler Graham Lawson. Senior pitcher Ridge Chapman has also been shut down for the fall but is expected to return in the spring.
In their place, Kingston said he actually feels better about the team’s pitching depth than he did last season — eight different freshmen or transfers have gotten innings in scrimmages so far.
“We got a lot of guys to look at, there’s no doubt. I think the depth of this staff is a little bigger than last year at this point, so we’ll have a lot of guys fighting to pick (Chapman’s spot) up,” Kingston said. “I don’t think anybody has been dominant yet, but also nobody has looked overwhelmed. It’s right in that middle ground.”
The Gamecocks will have one more scrimmage this week, on Friday, before facing North Carolina State on Saturday under new NCAA rules allowing baseball programs to play two games against other teams in the fall. Kingston said Tuesday that he hopes to play all of his players in that game to give them a taste of real competition, but added that he’s already starting to get a sense of what parts of the 2019 Gamecocks might look like.
”It’s too early to say what kind of team, or what our identity is yet, but we’re seeing enough quality things happen that we should be able to piece some things together,” Kingston said.
TOP OFFENSIVE PERFORMERS IN FALL SCRIMMAGES
Noah Campbell, junior second baseman — 4-12 with a double and walk
Jacob Olson, senior utility player — 4-8 with two doubles and a home run
Andrew Eyster, junior outfielder — 3-12 with a double and walk
Jonah Beamon, freshman second baseman — 3-8 with one walk
Quinntin Perez, junior infielder — 1-6 with a triple, two walks and a HBP
George Callil, junior shortstop — 3-8 with a double, an RBI sacrifice fly and one HBP

Gamecocks' Scrimmage vs. N.C. State Highlights This Week's Fall Schedule
Sept. 24, 2018
COLUMBIA – The University of South Carolina baseball team will continue its fall scrimmage schedule this week as the Gamecocks will play twice during the midweek and host North Carolina State on Saturday, Sept. 28. Carolina will scrimmage this Tuesday (Sept. 25) and Thursday (Sept. 27) at 4 p.m. The Gamecocks then host the Wolfpack on Saturday at 2 p.m. at Founders Park. All scrimmages are free and open to the public.
The University of South Carolina baseball team will continue its fall scrimmage schedule this week as the Gamecocks will play twice during the midweek and host North Carolina State on Saturday, Sept. 28. Carolina will scrimmage this Tuesday (Sept. 25) and Friday (Sept. 28) at 4 p.m. The Gamecocks then host the Wolfpack on Saturday at 2 p.m. at Founders Park. All scrimmages are free and open to the public.

Gamecock Baseball to Scrimmage Three Times This Week
The Gamecocks will play on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday at 4 p.m.
Sept. 17, 2018
COLUMBIA – The University of South Carolina baseball team will open its fall scrimmage schedule this week with a trio of games at Founders Park. The Gamecocks will scrimmage on Tuesday (Sept. 18), Wednesday (Sept. 19) and Friday (Sept. 21) with each game beginning at 4 p.m. All scrimmages are free and open to the public.